Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch Diagnosed With Cancer

Dan DeLuca

Music Critic

Dan DeLuca is an Inquirer pop music critic. But his "In the Mix" column in the Weekend section ventures further afield, into books, movies, TV, the Internet, graphic novels and anything you might call "popular culture."

Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys, who raps as MCA, has been diagnosed with cancer. The rapper and film director - he helmed the 2008 hoops movie Gunnin' For That #1 Spot - has a tumor in his salivary gland. The Beasties have pushed back the scheduled Sept. 15 release of their new studio album Hot Sauce Committee, and cancelled all of their tour dates, including high profile headlining gigs such as the All Points West festival July 31 in Jersey City. On a video he recorded with fellow Beastie Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz - who correctly points out to Yauch "it's not funny" - that's posted on the band's website, Yauch said that the cancer had been caught early, and he would be operated on next week. Here's the clip: